Former U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens gave a lecture at CU last night. And while it wasn’t big on headline-grabbing lines, it was filled with a lot of thoughtful insight into his judicial career and the cases he felt most passionately about, as well as a nice tribute to former SCOTUS Chief Justice — and Colorado football legend — Byron White.

The video of the lecture can be seen here, and it’s well worth an hour of your time if you groove on Constitutional law. The questions that came at the end were even more interesting, as Stevens gave opinions on everything from the politicization of the courts to the possibility of allowing television cameras into the Supreme Court chambers.

The lecture’s grabbiest moments came, though, when Stevens offered his views on the death penalty, telling the crowd at about the 26-minute mark of the video that he believes “the extraordinary costs of administering the death penalty significantly outweigh its benefits.” Such criticism of the death penalty isn’t all that new from Stevens — see, for instance, this interview last year with NPR’s Nina Totenberg. But, given the controversial execution of Troy Davis this week, they had extra grip. In addressing the Davis execution after a question from the audience, Stevens said (at about the 47-minute mark) he thought the Supreme Court had been careful in its consideration of the case and ultimately followed the law:

I think the court had no option but to uphold the decision. I do think the case is an example of the costs involved. And when there is some degree of uncertainty in the case one can’t help but be troubled that the enforcement of the penalty is so final.

There was also a funny moment during the Q&A when an audience member asked Stevens if he wanted to give an opinion on the Constitutionality of the individual mandate in the new health care law — the requirement that everybody buy health insurance. Stevens paused for a minute and then, grinning, said, “No.”

Stevens — who, incidentally, has a memoir coming out next month — was giving the first of what CU hopes will be an annual talk dubbed the “Stevens Lecture.” The school has announced that next year’s lecture will be given by current Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

LEADING OFF: After convicted killer Lawrence Russell Brewer ordered, but didn’t eat, an extensive pre-execution meal consisting of a pound of barbecue, a pint of ice cream, a pizza, fajitas, two chicken-fried steaks, a cheeseburger, some fudge, three root beers and a bowl of fried okra, Texas has put a stop to its practice of serving last meals to condemned inmates, according to The Houston Chronicle. Instead, after an official outcry over the lavish spread, dead men (and women) walking will receive the same meal as every other inmate in the prison, which on the day of Brewer’s execution consisted of sloppy Joes and navy beans. That story capped a big week for death penalty news in America, and, this morning, the discussion continues over what impact the disputed execution of Troy Davis in Georgia will have on the death penalty debate. Earlier in the week Slate’s Dahlia Lithwick and The Atlantic’s Andrew Cohen eachargued that Davis’ execution draws attention to flaws in the death-penalty system that may lead people to abandon support of it. But The Los Angeles Times’ Nation Now blog threw some cold water on that thought yesterday, noting that, while many were outraged over Davis’ execution, that wasn’t the case for Brewer’s even though Brewer, while a less sympathetic figure, also claimed innocence. This morning, The New York Times writes that the debate won’t likely reach a conclusion any time soon.